HMS Victory by gjdale - FINISHED - Mamoli - Scale 1:90

[texxn5]

Hi Grant, this little boat is truly a model by itself. Do you intend to make all of them like this? Really inspiring, and I'm envious of your talents.

[gjdale]

Thanks Kevin and John.

 

John: I will be making more, just haven't yet decided on how many I will do. They will be made in a similar fashioni, although there are some other techniques I want to try in the process.

[rdsaplala]

Hi Grant,

 

That is one mighty fine looking boat, Sir, truly an amazing job my friend, and excellent choice of wood too, everything looks crisp

[gjdale]

Thanks Aldo - nice to  hear from you again my friend. I hope your are managing to get some time in the shipyard these days.  That work thing is totally over-rated!

[rdsaplala]

Thanks, Grant, I'm still stuck to the computer doing some drawings, the good thing is that I am able to sneak some CAD-work while on break at the work place

[gjdale]

Hi all,

 

Well, I said I was going to get on with the Running Rigging but a couple of things happened along the way.  Firstly, I decided I'd like to use some of Chuck's excellent rigging line, so I've ordered a bunch of that and it's on the way.  Secondly, rather than buying Chuck's superb looking blocks, I decided I'd really like to have a go at making my own "Chucky Blocks" by following the method described in Chuck's outstanding post on this subject.  The following describes my journey to date in "learning how to fish" (and I'm not talking trout or moose here!).

 

First of all, I must say what an excellent description Chuck gives in his post.  I think that anyone with a Mill should have no problem at all in following suit.  I did however make a couple of minor mods along the way.

 

Chuck describes (and shows) making some feather boards for the Brynes Saw to assist in cutting both the Sheave groove and the Stropping groove.  These are really easy to make and work like a charm. The best part is, by using these it's virtually impossible to get your fingers anywhere near the saw blade!    You need two feather boards for each size block you're making, one each for the Sheave and Stropping groove.  Here's a pair for the 5/32" (4mm) blocks:

 

 

In making the "box" jig for the mill, I made a couple of minor mods.  First up, I decided to attach the base to the mill by using the standard Sherline hex cap head bolts, which meant making a counter sunk hole in the box base plate.  The advantage of this approach is that the base then becomes flush, with no bolts to get in the way of the drawer (or anything else). Here's a pic showing the box unit attached to the mill using the countersunk hex cap head bolts:

 

 

The next mod I decided to try was the top of the box jig.  Chuck advises that you need a separate jig for each size block you are making.  I thought that if I made the top removable, I could make a set of interchangeable tops and save myself a bit of extra time and effort making up more boxes.  The lids are held in place by locating pins (cut off nails). Here's the box with the lid separate:

 

 

Because I'd be placing and removing the lids fairly frequently, I thought I'd protect the locating holes from wear by inserting a small brass bush in each locating hole.  This was simply made by cutting off a piece of brass tube and inserting it in the hole with some epoxy glue.  The result is a snug fit that doesn't get looser over time. Here's a close-up of the arrangement:

 

 

The next mod was fairly simple.  I just replaced the nuts on the adjustable fence with wing nuts to make them easier to operate.  In this picture, you can see a set of strips with grooves cut placed in the jig ready for the milling process.

 

 

And here is the result of two passes of the mill, using the special round-over cutting bit (as recommended by Chuck):

 

 

I tested the set-up by making some small batches of both 1/4" (6.35mm) and 5/32" (4mm) blocks.  I am waiting on some boxwood stock from Jeff at Hobbymill, but for test purposes I used what I had at hand in the appropriate thickness - some crappy walnut for the 1/4" and some basswood for the 5/32".  I did the larger blocks first and discovered I had made both sheave and stropping grooves too deep.  I adjusted a little with the smaller blocks, but there is still room for improvement.  I don't have a small drill press like Chuck's (yet   ) but had no real difficulty drilling the holes with the Dremel in its drill stand.  I finished off the blocks by giving them a quick tumble in my previously built tumbler.  They could do with some more finishing, but as these were for "proof of concept" only, they will do.  Here's a selection from my test run:

 

 

Observations:

 

1. It works!     

 

2. The feather boards are a must - they are just brilliant.

 

3. All of my mods seem to work just fine.

 

4. The key to successful blocks (in my opinion) is getting the groove depths right.  Unfortunately, there is no magic way to get this right.    Trial and error and calibrating your eyeball is about the only way.

 

Thanks again to Chuck for "teaching me to fish". 

 

Edited April 4, 2014 by gjdale

[mobbsie]

Very nice Grant, your trials were successful and you have some fine results. I will continue to do it the easy way, buy them.

 

So your going to use some of Chucks rope for your ships boats, with Sjors making the oars for you and Popeye making the anchors that will finish them off nicely.  

 

Looking forward to seeing more pics mate, I'm sounding more like " he with no name ".  

 

Be good

 

mobbsie

[Micklen32]

That is some work there Grant

If they are anything like the ones in my kit I can barely see them never mind trying to work on them or make them   

I have made small stuff in my doll accessory making phase but nothing that small or accurate   

You have my admiration   

 

Keep it up   

Mick

[Chuck]

What a fantastic mod to the box jig.  That look incredible.   Getting a drill press makes the whole process easier.  The holes line up very easy and come out clean.   Your blocks look really good.  The slot depth is basically something you have to eyeball.  Too deep and you will get some chipping on the mill.  Too shallow and it wont look right.  For my strop slot,  I just make it visible.  I go very shallow on it.  As you can see,  if you go deep on that the sheave holes will break the surface and leave a hole in the strop groove.

 

It just takes some time experimenting and finding tolerances.  

 

Chuck

[Chuck]

I almost forgot...Hard maple is a great alternative and it is much cheaper wood.   I have tried it as an alternative and may possibly be offering them as a less expensive alternative to boxwood or pear at some point.

 

Chuck

[augie]

Well, I'm certainly impressed.  Still another fine effort on your part to get things absolutely spot on.  Really super, Grant.

 

Just one thing.  I suggest you get a timer for that block tumbler you designed a while back.  Hate to see you put any of these blocks in there and leave them for too long !

[gjdale]

Thanks Mobbsie, Mick, Chuck, and Augie.

 

All credit must go to Chuck - I just followed his instructions!

 

Chuck - thanks for the extra info there too.

 

Augie - about that timer................................

[rafine]

I'm impressed. Your blocks are great. Lacking a mill, however, I'm afraid that I will have to keep buying mine from Chuck -- unless you're going in the business too.

 

Bob

[Dan Vadas]

Hi Grant,

 

Good work on the setup - I'm going to do the same myself. I used "store-bought" 2mm blocks to rig the guns on Vulture - wish I'd made my own now (about 20% of them didn't even have holes   ).

 

Don't bother with a drill press unless you need the extra height. Rather, invest in the "Sensitive Drilling Attachment" for the Sherline Mill. It's FAR better for drilling tiny holes accurately without breaking drill bits.

 

 

 

  Danny

[mtaylor]

Grant,

 

Fantastic looking blocks even If they are "proof of concept".  I like the mods to the box.  

[gjdale]

Thanks Bob, Mark and Danny,

 

Bob - there is no way I'm going into competition with Chuck on this. Personal use only I'm afraid.

 

Danny - I have the sensitive drill attachment already and considered using it, but the "production line" nature of the job rules this out (unless you happen to have two mills). This is because you need to drill the holes between passes on the mill and once the box is set up on the mill, you don't want to be removing it until you have finished the "production run" for that size of blocks.

 

Having the breaking strain of a warm Mars Bar, I weakened and ordered the Proxxon mini Drill Press last night. The admiral doesn't know yet!

[themadchemist]

geez how I've missed my log reading. Hopefully I can get back to form soon.

 

Your boat, well I think I'd say not only WOW but very sexy. Girls like guys that are good with their hands, so hopefully the admiral won't dock your pay for misappropriations of funds.

 

Again, I love your well explained and photographed tutorials. The blocks and boat are mere shadows of the methods recorded that are helping restore so much to the new MSW2. Your log will be inspiration and a learning tool for long to come. It's nice to see it finished, but GREAT to see it done and shown so well illustrated. I love the community of improvement that MSW creates, such as your mods to Chucks methods. I always said to my students TEAM is an acronym for Together Each Achieves More. Its so great to learn methods from experts, not just see the finished beauty.

 

Beautiful work as expected. BTW i love that pear/boxwood and holly combo in the boat and the paint turned out perfect.

 

Oh, one question, you mentioned making the grating. How? I'm imagining several clamped together and sawn slots together.... any info on the saw/cutting device used would be appreciated as I'm wanting to make some gratings rather then buy them.

 

To Excellence   Cheers!

[gjdale]

Thanks Keith for your very kind words. I love your acronym of TEAM - I'm hereby steeling that for use at work!

 

To answer your question on the grating, the timber was pre-milled for me by Jeff at Hobby Mill (so they are similar to others that you can buy, only much smaller), but before you go asking him for the same, he did this as a one off to test/prove the concept himself. They were cut on the Byrnes saw, so I could have done them myself - but glad that Jeff did anyway! . Assembling them was a little tricky, but really only required patience and the magnification of the Optivisor. The pear trim was formed around them by simply soaking the thin pear strips in warm water for a few minutes and then gluing, bending and clamping while they were still wet. Then the whole thing was sanded lightly on a flat sanding board to even it out. Cutting out the extra slots/holes was the trickiest part.

 

In terms of making your own, there are plenty of tutorials on the forum. Check out Toni Levine's work for an example. Can't remember now whether its on her Atlanta or Longboat log, but it's on one of them (I think!).

 

The postman brought me presents this week! . Pics at the weekend!

[rdsaplala]

A mighty fine job on those blocks, Grant, your jig works perfectly, thanks for sharing your technique 

[mikec]

Have not been on site for a year. Looking fantastic Grant. Mike c

[gjdale]

Thanks Aldo, but it's not my technique, it's Chuck's - I just made a couple of minor mods to the jig.

 

Thanks Keith for putting the link in to Toni's work - she's one talented lady!

 

And thanks Mike for dropping by - nice to see you back at the all new MSW 2.0, and welcome aboard my log.

[Patrick Haw]

Hi Grant,

 

Your work and attention to detail are astounding.  Well done on producing your blocks, they will really add to the finished model immensely.  While I don't have anywhere near the skill you have, you have convinced me to buy the blocks for my Victory from Chuck...a long, long time until I need them though!

 

Keep up the great work, you're an inspiration to other Victory builders.

 

Patrick

[gjdale]

Thanks Patrick fr your kind words. I'm sure you'll be delighted with your blocks from Chuck.

[Sjors]

Congratulations Captain !!!!!

 

Nice drilling machine you have over there…...

I want one also but that's for a little later.

Nice wood !

 

Edited August 4, 2013 by Sjors

[mobbsie]

Congrats on your promotion Grant, Capan Sir.  

 

Soon be on the dark side my friend with all the new toys ( tools ) your collecting, just mind your fingers.

 

mobbsie

[gjdale]

Thanks Sjors, Brian, and Mobbsie.

 

Sjors - I suggest you buy one for Anja, as she will obviously need it for her scratch build, and then grovel sufficiently long enough that she lets you use it!

 

Brian - Warrior is still in sight, but commencement may be delayed. Aside from finally finishing this build, I have another smaller scratch project I wish to tackle first - sort of a training run if you like. In the meantime, I'm looking forward to seeing you start a build log for your Warrior so that you can show me the way!

 

Mobbsie - the dark side has certainly got a firm hold now. I've been using this current build to experiment with various different aspects of scratch building and have been having fun, although it has slowed me down somewhat! Now that I've added block making to the list, I think the only thing I haven't tried yet is rope making. But that will have to wait for the next build. I've decided to "outsource" the running rigging rope making to Chuck. Just waiting on delivery of some of his excellent rope now.

[augie]

Congratulations on a well deserved promotion.

 

And you've been busy!  Nice drill and some great looking wood you have there.  I surmise this puts you just about 'over the edge'.  That's ok ...... I still like you    .

 

Carry on, CAPTAIN !

[Kevin]

sorry i missed the promotion

[realworkingsailor]

Welcome to the big table....

 

(Not to be confused with that Other muddy table occupied by those two weirdos.... They seem to think they're important or something..... )

[Kevin]

Welcome to the big table....

 

(Not to be confused with that Other muddy table occupied by those two weirdos.... They seem to think they're important or something..... )

lol - i fail to remember who you are referring too